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This
report suggests a three level methodology to help identify the most
promising sites for the construction of a priority lane. The three
levels define a screening
process through which, the operating performance of the sites is
evaluated. Level I is a qualitative evaluation more appropriate as a
planning tool, performed by professionals familiar with the potential
sites and exercising their judgment A scoring sheet has been developed
to assist them. Level II addresses operational issues both in the short
and the medium term. Some simple calculations are necessary. Limited
amounts of data are necessary. In the first phase of Level II, the
analyst through a series of nomographs evaluates the priority and
non-priority lanes immediately after their implementation, that is
before any demand response occurs. The second phase of Level II
accounts for the demand response that will occur in the medium term. A
relatively simple analytical model is used for this phase. Level III is
a comprehensive evaluation of the sites that passed successfully
through Levels I and II. For this purpose, FREQ, a computer simulation
model was modified to accept the design of an added priority lane. The
new version, FREQ10PL is one part of the FREQ10 family. Two phases are
recognized, the short term (day+ 1) and the medium term. In
the medium term demand response occurs. This includes both spatial and
modal shifts. Spatial shift occurs from the arterial system to the
freeway priority and nonpriority lanes. Modal shift occurs from the
general purpose lanes of the freeway to the priority lanes. An
investigation at Level III requires considerable resources. It is
therefore best performed, with a limited number of sites.
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